Today, back to film again for me.. it was about time I watched Milk, which was now coming up on my list. Stars Sean Penn in the true story of California's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk. Josh Brolin is a rival city official, Diego Luna is Milk's volatile boyfriend, James Franco his longterm ex-lover and enduring friend. Available on Amazon Prime.
It begins by educating us about how hard things were for homosexuals in the 70s - plenty of footage of police raiding gay bars. And indeed, we're left in no doubt that Milk is in danger himself - one of the early scenes has him recording a message to be listened to in the event of his assassination. As the film progresses, we get more snippets of the message - and it's no real surprise that he is, indeed, murdered towards the end. It's not even a surprise who does it - I suspected him from almost the first time I saw him.
It's really moving, actually. You feel for the gay rights protesters - I was surprised to hear how illiberal San Francisco was in those days. So different from the laid-back vibe we expect from there - but then, Milk, it seems, did a lot to bring gay culture into the open. A brave man - one scene, however, has him actually breaking into a run to get back home, when he thinks someone is following him. Not a crazy idea - a lot of gay men were murdered, and the cops were in no great rush to charge anyone with it.
It's very, very watchable - and the end, with the understated killing and his friends' emotional response, is devastating, as we've gotten to know them all so well by then. Highly recommended. Wow, another great suggestion from my list!
For tomorrow, a complete change of tone - with Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year. Also available on Amazon Prime, this is an Indian comedy about a young man who decides to go into sales - but soon finds it might not be exactly what fulfills him.
No comments:
Post a Comment